St. Louis' offense is taking flight this year with an uptick in scoring a key to the team's hot start. But the Cardinals certainly could use more offensive production from the outfield, where outside of Jordan Walker, they have hit just .220/.265/.331.
But down at Triple-A, one of their top prospects is really starting to heat up while manning center field.
Joshua Báez (STL No. 3) delivered his first multihomer game of the season -- and tied career highs with four hits and five RBIs -- in a 19-5 rout of Omaha on Tuesday at Werner Park.
The 6-foot-3 slugger has been on quite a power tear lately, with seven of his past 11 hits going for extra bases (including five homers). Over that 10-day stretch, he's raised his OPS 74 points to .852, his highest mark of the season.
MLB's No. 68 prospect has been channeling his plus-plus raw power all season with 13 home runs, bringing him into a tie with teammate Jimmy Crooks (STL No. 7) for third place in the International League. Báez backs that up with a 49.1 percent hard-hit rate, which ranks in the 86th percentile at the Minors' highest level.
COMPLETE CARDINALS PROSPECT COVERAGE
Báez displayed plenty of bat speed on Tuesday as he rocketed three batted balls in excess of 103 mph. The 22-year-old got his day started by grounding a 104.9 mph single the other way off fellow righty Mitch Spence (Royals) before launching a high slider over the left-field wall at 94.5 mph. His second homer, also on a Spence hanging breaking ball, was truly a no-doubter at 103.9 mph.
The 2021 second-round pick unleashed his hardest-hit ball of the year in the seventh, a 113.3 mph screamer, but it was hit right at shortstop Kevin Newman for a fielder's choice. Not to be deterred, Báez ended his day with a 99.1 mph single in the ninth off position player Abraham Toro, pitching to wrap up the blowout.
More from MLB Pipeline:
• Top 100 prospects | Stats | Video | Podcast | Complete coverage
Báez could bring some much-needed right-handed thunder to the Cardinals' lineup, although he still has some issues to iron out. Last year's breakout season with 20 homers and 54 stolen bases was impressive because he cut his strikeout rate from 35.5 percent to 20.6. That whiff rate has ballooned back up to 33 percent this year. He's also struggled against velocity -- small sample size caveats aside -- with a .281 wOBA against 95+ mph pitches this year.
Still, Báez has shown that his calling-card power is among the best in the Minor Leagues -- and could make him an impact Major Leaguer before long.